His Grin
by EightofSwords
Summary: (Complete(First Season, MoonMask) “A stupid, lazy crybaby…that’s all I’ll ever be. And he deserves better.” Sailor Moon struggles to accept herself for who she is.
1. Without the Hat

A/N: Another of my vignettes. It can be read as a stand-alone or as a partner piece to "Never Been So Bright" (if you want).

Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon. But if I had a Luna P ball like Chibi-Usa, I could make everyone think that I did.

* * *

**His Grin**

* * *

"Dust it, Sailor Moon!"

Sailor Moon whipped off her tiara and hurled it with all her might. A moment later, all that was left to show the youma had ever existed was a pile of gray dust.

Well, that and the excruciatingly painful cut on her leg.

She dropped into a squat on the fire escape to examine the wound. Her hair kept slipping over her shoulder and obscuring her vision; she kept shoving it back over her shoulder so she could see, but to no avail. She let out a little shriek of frustration mingled with pain. That cut _burned_, and her stupid hair wouldn't MOVE!

"Here."

She felt a hand pulling her hair back with infinite gentleness, looping it behind her ear. She looked up to see Tuxedo Kamen crouched beside her, holding her hair in place. Her breath caught, all thoughts of the pain in her leg vanishing as she stared at his starlit profile.

His eyes – their color indiscernible behind the mask – were focused on her injury. "They gotcha nasty this time, didn't they?"

She let out a nervous laugh of agreement, then mentally cringed at how high-pitched and breathless she had sounded. _Way to make him think you're mature!_

These thoughts of mortification were yanked from her mind as his fingers probed the wound, sending forks of fire lancing down her nerves. She gasped and blinked back tears.

"Sorry about that." Tuxedo Kamen's voice was soft, breathy, like the night wind. "It's bruised, too – you're gonna be walking stiffly for a couple of days. You're just lucky it's not your hamstring – you wouldn't be walking for weeks, much less dodging youma."

"That's good. Sailor Senshi don't get sick leave." Sailor Moon forced a weak grin, glancing up at him.

His lips curved, too, sending her stomach into a series of flipflops. She stared at him for a moment, held captive by the perfection of his ebony hair, clear eyes, determined chin…

"Where are your friends?"

She jumped. "F-f-friends?"

His voice held a frown. "Yeah. You know – the others. Mercury and Mars."

"Oh…I didn't want to bother them if it wasn't really important. Am – I mean, Mercury has a huge microbiology final tomorrow, and Mars' grandpa is sick."

"Finals…that's right…" he breathed, eyes hazing. Then they snapped back to her. Could she discern a hint of blue, or was it just her imagination? The man in her dreams had blue eyes… "Don't you have to study, too?"

Sailor Moon laughed sheepishly, rubbing the back of her neck. "I'm not exactly a star student…I wasn't gonna pass anyway."

She shifted on her burning leg, wanting to get home so she could fall asleep and escape the feverish jolts of pain that kept throbbing up from the wound, but at the same time, she was loath to leave this intimate interlude with Tuxedo Kamen. How many times had she ever just stood and talked to him? She could count such instances on one hand – one finger, even.

"I see…" Silence fell again. His gloved hand moved up as though to run through his hair, and ended up knocking off his top hat. The dashing black accessory tumbled to the mesh wire floor of the fire escape, then over the edge and to the floor of the alley. He smiled ruefully, raked a hand through his hair. The gesture was familiar… "Oops. Keep forgetting about that stupid hat."

"I like it. It's dashing."

He flashed her a grin, the first one she had seen on his face, ever. Idly, she thought it was as though with the disappearance of the top hat, a bit of his restrain had vanished as well. This was the first time she'd seen him_ grin_ instead of just smile gently, condescendingly. "I don't. It's annoying."

"Yeah, I know how that can be." Sailor Moon tugged self-consciously at the short skirt that just barely skimmed her thighs. "These costumes don't seem to be tailored for efficiency, do they?"

"Not really." He grinned again, his mask falling to a jaunty angle as he tipped his head toward her. Was that his breath that she could feel brushing her lips? "But I like yours better than mine."

Her heart stopped.

A grin clawed at the corners of her mouth. Had he just flirted with her? Man, if this was what happened when she went out and fought youmas without Mars and Mercury, they were never coming with her ever again!

"And I always thought you got the better end of the deal," answered Sailor Moon shyly, reaching up and pushing his mask back to its proper resting place on his nose with a trembling finger. How easy would it have been for her to just rip away the mask and see who he was? His eyes glittered, seeming to sense this path her thoughts were taking, but he made no move to stop her.

She let out an inaudible sigh, and let her hands fall.

Hands wrapped around her wrists, catching her arms before they fell back to her sides. Her heart skipped again; she stared up at him, barely breathing. Yes, she was sure now; she could see flecks of blue in his gaze. And her own reflection, pale and breathless.

"I do. I get to stare at you."

Her lips parted in a gasp, her eyes flying wide open; his lips curved in yet another wonderful grin, and his hands squeezed her wrists. Then he was gone, with a flutter of his cape and a flutter of her heart.

Does it surprise anyone that as Tsukino Bunny drifted into slumber that night, she barely remembered the gash on her leg?

* * *

A/N: Ahhhh... I wish _I_ had a guy like Tuxedo Kamen. _And _Sailor Moon's legs. I would give my whole Cardcaptor Sakura collection to have legs like Sailor Moon's. (sigh)

Anyways – how do you guys like short stories like this? I mean, like this one and like "Never Been So Bright," when there's a tiny, tiny, tiny little bit of Moon/Mask, but not enough to do anything but whet you appetite? Do you find it unsatisfying? I know I would! But I'm trying to think…if I can come up with more like this, I might post a bunch of these little shorts one-shots as one fic. It won't be until after I have four chapters of STC posted, though. But tell me what you think.

EightofSword's quote for the day: "Reviews are like steaks. They should be nice and juicy." Hint, hint!


	2. Battling Bruised

A/N: I've been itching to continue this story for forever…and I'm having a bit of writer's block with STC, so I decided to whip up a little bit of this…It's not much, but it keeps me from feeling lazy. (sheepish grin). But don't worry, I WILL have a new chapter of STC out soon.

Disclaimer:

Short skirts and funky hair;

Motoki, Yaten, Jadeite, Dare –

The fact that none of them belong to me

makes me feel much misery.

* * *

"Can't you speed it up at all, Sailor Moon?" shouted Sailor Mars impatiently over her shoulder.

The blonde who was the focus of the Fire Senshi's rage barely had the breath to reply. "I'm…trying, Mars!" she gasped out, clenching her jaw against the pain that throbbed in her leg. She had barely been able to walk to school that morning, much less make her daily detour to the arcade after detention. And now she found herself sprinting the two miles to the park!

"Really, Sailor Moon, can't you move any faster?" called Mercury.

"I'm _trying_," Sailor Moon repeated, half shouting, half crying. Sweat was breaking out on her neck and forehead.

Finally, they reached the park. It was a dark night; the moonlight that usually shone on the water during youma attacks was absent.

"Okay, where is the Big Ugly?" whispered Mars, prowling about in her high heels.

Mercury clicked quietly away on her computer for a few minutes as they waited for Sailor Moon to catch up. "Right over…there." Flipping her laptop closed decisively, the blue-haired Scout pointed towards the playground.

"Man, I could really use some wings right now," grunted Sailor Moon as her two fellow Senshi broke into another run towards the hulking shapes of the swingsets. "Guys! Wait up!" Her shout echoed in the quiet stillness. She cringed.

"Sailor Moon! Behind you!" Mars' voice rang out.

Sailor Moon spun on her ankle, and immediately regretted it. Not only did pain shoot up her leg like a knife, but the movement also positioned her directly under the rope of slobber streaming steadily from the youma's lip.

"Oh, darn it," she breathed.

"MERCURY SHINING AQUA ILLUSION!"

Mist sprayed all around her, freezing the stalagmite of drool, much to Sailor Moon's relief. This relief was short-lived however, because Mercury's mist had no other effect on the youma.

"My mithhtress wanthh to thhee you, Thhailor Moon!" lisped the monster, sending globules of spit in all direction. As the spit made contact with her skirt and bow, it began to hiss and burn through the material. Sailor Moon squeaked and hobbled backwards as the youma advanced forward. "Thhe hathh thhome buthhiness to dithcuthh with you."

"A little help here, guys?" Sailor Moon shrieked as her shoulder blades collided with a tree trunk. The youma had cornered her, and that rope of acidic drool was beginning to thaw.

"MARS FIREBALL!"

The youma was thrown backwards, colliding with a tree. The blood from its burns hissed against the tree's bark, and a truly foul stench – like cough medicine mixed with rotten eggs – filled the air.

Sailor Moon heaved a grateful sigh and stepped forward, hand lifting to her tiara. Then, without warning, her foot caught in a root, and she pitched face-first into the dirt.

"Ow…" Sailor Moon breathed pitifully through her clenched jaw, blinking back tears at the agony rippling through her leg. _Oh, God, it hurts…_ She struggled to push herself up to her feet. _Dust the youma, then you can go home…_ She finally made it to a standing position, swaying slightly.

"What are you waiting for?" called Mercury anxiously, landing a few feet away. "Dust it!"

"Sailor Moon! Come ON!" Sailor Mars raged, shoving her blonde leader roughly. The shorter Senshi stumbled back against the tree trunk. "We haven't got all night!"

"Hey!" A black shadow landed between the two Senshi, moving protectively in front of Sailor Moon. Mars and Mercury stared in shock and amazement at the dangerously glinting eyes and hatless black hair. "Lay off! Haven't you seen her leg?"

"Ix-nay on the eg-lay," hissed Sailor Moon to her masked protector, limping forward. She closed her eyes shakily and reached up to her forehead again. "Moon… Tiara…Magic."

The unusually dim disc of light wobbled towards the immobile youma, just glancing off the black mark on its forehead before clattering to the ground. Sailor Moon put a hand to her forehead, hiding her face and turning away from Tuxedo Mask. Without the glamour of the tiara, he would be able to see her as she truly was – Bunny Tsukino, weak, helpless, stupid fourteen-year-old.

It was as though last night's situation was being relived in reverse – Tuxedo Mask watched her a moment before walking away and bending down to pick up her fallen tiara. While he was thus distracted, Mars sidled over to stand in front of Sailor Moon. One of Tuxedo Mask's eyebrows twitched, but other than that, he gave no indication of having noticed the defensive position. He stopped a few feet away from them, gingerly balancing the tiara in his hand.

"May I have a word with Sailor Moon, please?" he asked.

"I need my tiara," came Sailor Moon's muffled voice from behind Mars.

Mars thrust a hand out to Tuxedo Mask. "Give it here."

Tuxedo Mask shrugged and dropped the golden headpiece in Mars' gloved hand.

"ITAI!" The scream echoed outwards in the stillness of the night, like a ripple in water. Sailor Mars dropped Moon's tiara like a hot coal. "It burned me!"

A small smile curved Tuxedo Mask's lips as he bent once more to retieve the golden weapon, which was still glowing faintly with the dregs of power left from dusting the youma. "Sailor Moon."

Still turned away, Sailor Moon blindly reached out and took her tiara from him. She felt deeply mortified as she fit the headpiece back onto her forehead and turned to Tuxedo Mask. Her face was about as red as one of his roses.

"What did you need?" Her voice was raspy, strained.

Tuxedo Mask glanced at the two Senshi hovering a little too close for his liking – especially Mars. "Uh – could you give us a little space, please?"

"Anything you wanna say to the Mea – the Moon Brain, I mean, you can say to us." Mars folded her arms defiantly across her chest.

"Well, aren't you nosy." Tuxedo Mask's lips quirked upwards.

"Why, you little – " Mars began to sputter, flames jumping from her fingertips, but before she could even begin her attack words, Tuxedo Mask had scooped up Sailor Moon and bounded into the treetops out of sight.

* * *

A/N: Hmm. Would you look at that? A cliffhanger. How interesting. ; ) 


	3. Back to Square One?

**A/N:** Sorry, guys, I mean to have this out sooner. Under threat of no Internet from my parents, I have been forced to slave away under the boiling sun, for the past two days, re-landscaping the front yard. So who knows how romantic this chapter's going to be –

Surprisingly, writing romance when there's dirt caked under your fingernails and sweat gluing your shirt to your back is extremely difficult. But maybe you didn't need to know all that.

**Note**: I use the name "Bunny" in this fic instead of "Serena." Bunny is what they call Serena in the manga. I know a lot of people don't like that, but I just have a soft spot for the name, so I'm using it in this fic. Arigatou!

**Disclaimer**: According to Mercury-san's computer, the chances of me ever owning Sailor Moon are three trillion, four hundred sixty-two billion to one….which means there's still a chance! YES!

* * *

**His Grin:**

Chapter Three

* * *

"You nearly fainted out there." Tuxedo Mask's voice was light as he held her loosely – carefully – and bounded from treetop to rooftop in a single leap.

Sailor Moon forced a smile, though her jaw remained locked lest she let out a scream of pain from her leg. "I'm fine."

"No, you're not."

"How would you know?' she challenged, her hands gripping the lapel of his coat tightly as they crossed a particularly long gap between buildings.

"Hmm, let's see." He glanced down at her, then his eyes returned to that unwavering point in front of them – their destination, she supposed. Wherever he was taking her – _wait a second._

The gravity of her situation suddenly slammed into Sailor Moon. She had just been spirited off into the night by Tuxedo Mask. _Tuxedo Mask!_ Um, okay, how jealous was Mars going to be! And Luna – she'd be furious! _But I'm not even going to worry_, she told herself resolutely,_ cause then I'll get all worried and I'll miss listening to Tuxedo Mask's wonderful voice…_ She hastily tuned back in.

"Maybe the way you're shaking like Jell-O, or your tiara being about as bright as a two-watt lightbulb. Or maybe the fact that you're bleeding again."

"What!" Sailor Moon twisted in his grip to look for the said reopened cut – and sure enough, there it was, seeping blood all down her leg and staining his nice tuxedo. "Oh my gosh! It's getting all over your sleeve – I'm so sorry!"

"Don't sweat it." He grinned down at her, chin brushing her bangs. A shiver tremored through her at his proximity – then he looked away again to that point in the distance. "It'll be good as new the next time I transform."

"So you _do_ transform," Sailor Moon tilted her head. "Luna was wondering about that."

"Luna?" A frown curved his lips. "That wouldn't happen to be a cat by any chance, would it?" She stiffened, but luckily, he went on with a laugh. "No, of course it isn't – that would be too much of a coincidence – never mind. I was just being weird."

"Yeah," agreed Sailor Moon hurriedly, scrambling around for a different subject. "Um…Where's your hat?"

"Why? Do you miss it?" he teased.

"No!" Sailor Moon blushed, looking down. Again, she felt her hair brush his face. "I mean – well, maybe, but that's not – oh, forget it," she sighed, feeling unbearably humiliated. She hadn't been so embarrassed since the time she fell in Darien the jerkwad's lap after she tripped over a crack in the Arcade tile. It was almost enough to make her forget about her agonizing leg. Almost. "Where are you taking me?" _Cause I really just wanna go home and pop some aspirin…_

"Somewhere," he replied evasively, arms tightening around her.

"Oh," said a sleepy Sailor Moon intelligently, her head falling back into the crook between his neck and shoulder. She yawned, eyes drifting shut. It had been a long night, and sleep was the next best thing after painkillers. "Well, when we get _somewhere_, will you wake me up?"

There was a smile in his voice. "Whatever you say, Sleeping Beauty."

_Why…am I trusting…a guy…whose identity I don't even know?_ Bunny's common sense – what little she had, anyway – nagged her as she floated off into Dreamland. _Is it weird for me…to feel so safe here with him…?_

* * *

"Hey. Sleepy Head."

"Ten more minutes," Sailor Moon mumbled, her head twisting away from the voice.

"Not that I wouldn't enjoy it, but I really want to take a look at your leg."

"WHAT!" Sailor Moon bolted up, cheeks stained a brilliant crimson. She dimly realized that they were standing in the balcony of some high-rise apartment building, and that the night wind was whipping her hair into his face. She flushed harder and grabbed at the streamers of hair in vain, pressing them against her ears, trying to save herself from yet more humiliation. _Did he just say what I think he said!_

"I said, I want to take a look at your leg," repeated Tuxedo Mask, somewhat mischievously. His eyes danced behind the mask, making her blush even harder, because _she_ knew that _he_ knew what she had been thinking. _Please, just let me melt into the floor!_ _And my leg still hurts! What does the world have against me?_ "You know, so I can see how bad that wound of yours has gotten."

"Oh – of course!" laughed Sailor Moon, rubbing the back of her neck. "Um – yeah – where are we?"

"My apartment." He slid open the glass door and gestured her inside. She stepped into the dark room tentatively. _Luna would kill me. My dad would kill me. Rei would kill me. I am in the apartment of a guy I don't know, in the middle of the night…_ her stomach churned, and then she remembered – _but I'm Sailor Moon. I can handle Tuxedo Mask if he ever did anything like that – not that he would, cause he's a totally hot, totally trustworthy gentleman who also happens to be really hot – and I mean, come on, he's really hot and dashing, but all he does is throw roses around, which is nothing compared to my tiara – _

"Earth to Sailor Moon." (A/N: Ah, the irony.)

The amused voice jolted her out of her mental babbling, and she jumped with a little gasp, flushing again as she met his gaze. "Um – sorry. I kinda spaced out."

"I noticed," he returned dryly. He stepped past her, forging into the darkness with a confidence born of familiarity, and switched on a light. A lamp flooded the room they were in – a living room, judging by the arrangement of couches and coffee tables – with a soft yellow light like melted butter. It was slightly sunken; a step led up into a small kitchen with a breakfast bar.

"Um – you don't have to answer this if you don't want to," Sailor Moon began, fiddling with the hem of her skirt, "but, um, why did you bring me to your apartment? I mean, aren't you worried that I could find out who you are? Not that I'd try to pry or anything, since I of all people know about keeping secret identities secret, cause that's what they're for, and maybe you have a cat who would get really mad at you if someone found out who you were, too, but – " _Bunny, you idiot, you're babbling! Shut up before he thinks you're a TOTAL meatball brain – although it's probably too late for that, considering how ditzy you've been acting in front of him all night – oops, babbling again…_

"Calm down, Sailor Moon." Sailor Moon's eyes snapped up to see him watching her with twinkling eyes once more. "It's okay, I'm not going to bite you. Here, have a seat."

Slowly, as though about to sit on hot coals, Sailor Moon lowered herself onto the edge of an armchair – the article of furniture that was closest to her quivering knees.

He quirked a grin at her. "Breathe, Sailor Moon. Inhale, exhale – that's right, in and out – "

"I think I know how to breathe, thanks," retorted Sailor Moon, settling a bit further back into the chair. This was conversation she felt more comfortable with – banter back and forth, like the sort she shared with the jerkwad every day. "And you didn't answer my question."

"You're starting to sound like Mars," Tuxedo Mask commented, moving behind the breakfast bar and rummaging in a cupboard. "Should I be afraid?"

"Yes. In fact, you should run away as fast and as far as you can," Sailor Moon advised with a small giggle. She felt the anxiety seeping slowly from her bones, and tilted her head, watching him. She had to grin at the ridiculous sight he made: a debonair hunk in a tuxedo and cape, digging around in a kitchen like a busy housewife. "What are you looking for?"

"Doctor stuff. Have you bandaged that wound at all?"

"I did, last night, but…I took it off before school. I didn't want anyone to notice the bandage and ask questions." She shifted in her seat, covering the oozing cut with a gloved hand and trying to position herself so that none of the dark red liquid would seep onto his armchair. "Because, you know, I can't answer them, and then someone ends up with their feelings hurt because I won't tell them."

"I wouldn't know," said Tuxedo Mask, finally closing the cupboard and returning to the living room to set his finds on the coffee table. "I'm lucky that way. It's a lot easier to be a superhero when you lead a solitary lifestyle. Less people know you, therefore, less people to ask questions."

"Yeah…lucky…" Sailor Moon hugged her knees to her chest, watching him as he walked back to the kitchen to wet a washcloth under the faucet. _He's so strong. Way stronger than me. Even though it hurts to see the looks on my friends' faces when I refuse to answer their questions, I think I'd probably go insane if I didn't have them there to be worried about me…_ "Speaking of questions, you _still_ haven't answered mine."

She had intended her slightly whiny tone to annoy him into answering her question, but instead, his lips just curved into another grin. And even though he kept silent, she couldn't help but be pleased with herself for making him smile again. He had such a young, boyish smile – it made him seem so much more accessible to her, someone she could actually talk to and tease, instead of that distant idol of perfection who threw roses and never stayed for conversations.

"Is it really that important to you that I answer?"

Sailor Moon sheepishly rubbed her forehead with the heel of her hand. "I guess not – I mean, I was just curious…"

He returned with the washcloth dripping steadily on the carpeted floor. Funny that the washcloth made that rhythmic sound, but that Tuxedo Mask's footsteps made no noise at all as he crossed the room.

He crouched beside her, motioning to her to let him see her leg. She complied with the slightest of blushes, propping it up on the coffee table and watching his face intently. He lifted the washcloth and began to wipe the crusting blood from around the cut. She hissed slightly at the contact with the inflamed skin, but willed herself to be silent as he began to speak.

"I was kind of worried about bringing you here – after all, what would you think of me bringing you to my apartment? I didn't want to scare you or anything – but getting this injury of yours patched up seemed more important – " He was speaking faster with every word, as though forcing himself to finish talking before he lost his nerve; as he spoke, he kept his eyes studiously trained on the job of removing all remnants of blood. "And I'm not really worried about you finding out who I am. You seem like an extremely honest and trustworthy person – after all, you're Sailor Moon, and those qualities are part of the job description, right? – and if I didn't want you to find out who I was, I don't think you'd try. And if you did anyways, it wouldn't be that bad, I wouldn't necessarily mind if you knew my civilian identity – although I think you'd be disappointed by it." He stopped, then added hastily, "And, you know, there's probably about fifty high-rise apartment buildings in Tokyo just like this one, so it's not like it would be _that _easy for you to track me down."

"Wow." Sailor Moon blinked. _Was it just me, or did **he** sound kind of flustered right there? That's a good thing, right? Does he really trust me like that? He shouldn't. He couldn't. I'm just a klutzy crybaby…_ "I – I had no idea you had thought so much about it."

"Yeah, well," he muttered. "You'd stress over it, too, if it was you spiriting some strange girl who can throw lethal tiaras to your apartment."

"Yeah, I guess – ouch, ouch, _ouch!_" She twisted away from him suddenly, hands flying to cover her bloody bruises. She tried to glare at him, but her eyes just watered

with tears instead. "That _hurt_."

"Sorry," he murmured, honestly contrite, gazing up at her from beneath his dark bangs. "My glove snagged on your skin – here, look, I'll take them off." He tugged off his gloves, which she suddenly noticed were liberally stained with blood.

"I'm sorry," she blurted out.

"What for?" he asked, glancing up at her perplexedly. She once more felt the urge to knock that mask of his aside, and then felt a wash of guilt – after all the things he had just said about trusting her! _I'm not worthy of that trust…_ her stomach sank, and she looked down at her hands, knotted in her lap.

"For staining your gloves. And for everything else. For being such a horrible nuisance, I know you have more important things to be doing – "

"Why do you think so little of yourself?" he interrupted her. He tugged gently on one of her ponytails, forcing her to meet his eyes. "First that bit with not bothering the Scouts because they were too busy for such an _unimportant _battle even though you could easily have _died_, and then not even telling them or anyone else that you were injured, and now you're worrying about my _gloves_? Worry about yourself for once." He let go of her hair and tapped her – tentatively – on the forehead. "And – let other people worry about you, too."

They sat very still for a moment, frozen in that position. Moonlight spilled across Tuxedo Mask's serious features and illuminated his eyes – _they're blue,_ thought Bunny with sudden conviction, staring into those masked irises with a rapt concentration. _Blue, like **his**._ Something rose up in her chest, overwhelming and powerful –

Tuxedo Mask cleared his throat abruptly and looked away from her, grabbing the washcloth again. "Almost done," he mumbled, scrubbing at her leg again.

The tidal wave that had threatened to break and crash across Sailor Moon's heart slowly sank back down again, becoming just another part of the turbulent ocean storming within her chest. _He's not yours – you could never be together – Luna would kill you – you don't even know who he is – he doesn't even like you that way –_

"Ack! Cold!" she gasped, flinching as a chilly substance covered her cut. "What is that?"

"Just some healing cream," answered Tuxedo Mask, recapping the tube. "So it doesn't scar."

"Well, at least it didn't sting," grumbled Sailor Moon. "Does that mean you're done now?"

"Nope," was his simple answer, and Sailor Moon felt simultaneously a rush of relief and of disappointment. Now – just like the night she's received this wound – she was both loath and eager to escape from Tuxedo Mask. "Still gotta put on a bandage. And don't take it off for at least two days – I'll try to wind it tight so that no one can see it, but even if it's visible, don't take it off. The binding should keep you from making any movements that might open the cut again, or open it further – in which case you're going to need stitches." As he spoke, he wound the stretchy white material around her leg.

"You sound like you know what you're doing," noted Sailor Moon. _My, what an excellent conversationalist you are, Bunny – not._

He smiled gently. She felt her heart sinking – that was his Tuxedo Mask smile, the _I'm more mature than you are and you couldn't possible understand anything about me, but because you're a child, I'll humor you _one. "I should hope so. I'm studying to become a physician."

"Oh." She gulped, throat dry. He must have a lot of homework. Darien wanted to be a doctor, too, and he was always poring over stacks of books at the arcade, studying for some test or other. How did Tuxedo Mask find the time for saving her with all the homework? "That's, um, handy." _Come on, Bunny, say something interesting – you have to get rid of that smile! You're losing him…_

"Yeah."

Conversation trickled off again. Sailor Moon sat in uncomfortable silence, glancing around the room as he wound the bandage around and around – she had never been one to feel at ease when there was no talking. It was as though a spell had broken; the clock had struck twelve, and whatever magic that had constructed a bridge between them had dissolved, so that once again Tuxedo Mask was the aloof enigma who was far too complicated for her to understand and Bunny was the awkward klutz who just happened to possess superpowers.

* * *

A/N: Kind of disappointing end to the chapter, I know. But I was losing track of my destination, so I had to cut it off quickly and regroup before I started babbling (like Bunny!). I am determined to keep this fic short and sweet (like Bunny!). I think the next chapter will be the last one.

Please, all you lovely readers of mine, REVIEW! I need reviews to lift me from my mulch-overload-induced depression!


	4. Tsunami

**A/N**: Okay, I lied. This isn't the last chapter. But it _is_ the second to last. A lot of people have reviewed telling me to continue because there's so many possibilities for this fic. I agree, there are, but they're possibilities that I want to use for my precious baby, _Subject to Change_. I strongly advise – and beg – all of you who asked me to prolong this fic to check out _Subject to Change_, an SM fic that's been quite warmly received – if I do say so myself.

Um, again, I'm using the name Bunny from the manga because I feel like it.

**Disclaimer**: I can't draw Darien without making him look like a girl. That's why Naoko owns Sailor Moon and I don't.

* * *

**His Grin:**

Chapter Four

* * *

"WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN?" Luna's outraged squall greeted Bunny as she clambered clumsily into her room through the window later that night – or earlier that morning, however one prefers to look at it.

Bunny sighed, dropping from the sill to the carpet. She was so tired…she just wanted to go to sleep and forget all about the nighttime escapade that had started out with such potential and petered down to just another instance of Tuxedo Mask rescuing her. The only difference between this time and all the other ones was that he had been able to scold her this time, just like the Scouts and Luna, who similarly thought her incompetent. And rightly so…

Bunny's eyelids drooped. She looked at her clock. 2:00 a.m. She would just curl into bed, and…wait – didn't she have that Geometry final tomorrow?

"Bunny," growled Luna threateningly.

"The battle took a little longer than I thought it would, Luna," Bunny said quietly, forcing herself up off the floor and to her desk. "But it's okay, nothing's wrong. Go back to sleep."

"What are you doing?" asked Luna curiously as Bunny flipped open her geometry book. "You're not studying – at this hour?"

Bunny nodded her head drowsily, staring at the rows of postulates on the page before her. _When a chord_ – what was a chord again? _…intersects the diameter_ – was that the long one or the short one? She couldn't remember. _…and it is bisected, then the two are…_

"Bunny, why don't you go to bed," suggested Luna gently, leaping up to the desk and nudging the book out of Bunny's hands. "If you get into turn in now you might be able to get five hours of sleep in."

"Yeah, I guess so," said her ward dejectedly, shoulders slumping. "It's not like I understand this stuff, anyways. What's one more failing test grade?"

"If you don't understand it, why don't you just ask Ami to help you?" inquired Luna as Bunny shuffled over to her bed.

Bunny peeled back the comforter and sank gratefully onto her mattress. "Ami always uses such big words… I never understand what she's saying, and when she tries to explain, it just confuses me more." Yawning, and with arms that felt like leaden weights, Bunny fumbled up to pull her hair buns out. "And even though…she doesn't show it…I can see her getting frustrated and annoyed..." Bunny burrowed down into the sheets. Maybe if she wrapped them around her tight enough, they would form a chrysalis, and she would wake up the next morning to find out that she had been transformed from a clumsy, useless caterpillar to a beautiful butterfly. And then maybe he would be able to see her as someone to love. "Besides…Ami-chan's got so much homework to do already…she doesn't have time to walk me through every homework problem."

"You know that she'd make time for you."

Bunny's eyes fluttered shut, and she smiled faintly. "No, I don't wanna drag her down. I do okay." She laughed, a strange hitch in her breath, and breath. Luna snuggled against her neck, purring softly. "It's not like I need an education anyway…my career's already set in stone, right? Fight evil…and…protect…the…princess…"

* * *

Luna's estimate of how much sleep Bunny would get had been – unsurprisingly – accurate. Five hours, just enough for Bunny's muscles to relax, but not long enough for REM to start – so she was sore, and she was cranky. Her eyelids drooped as she trudged to school, too exhausted to pick up any speed despite the fact that the clock was only mere minutes away from tolling eight o'clock.

_Stupid youmas_, she thought to herself as she shuffled along, head hanging tiredly. Her buns were haphazard clumps of golden hair pinned on top of her head; the bow on the front of her school uniform was sloppily tied so that one end hung to her waist, and dark smudges painted the skin beneath her faded blue eyes. _They don't even have to attack me to kill me, they just need to show up and eventually I'll die of exhaustion._

"Whoah," said an all-too-familiar voice. "Someone was up late last night. Not studying, I'll bet."

Darien's words cut deep, reminding her of the Geometry test she had that morning… and knew nothing about. Bunny's face paled, and her hands curled into fists, but she didn't have the energy to do anything else. She just kept on walking, drowsily telling herself to make a memo to kill Darien as soon as she got her hands on some caffeine. A Moon Tiara should deflate his ego sufficiently.

"What, no cutting retort?" The jerkwad wasn't giving up. "Does this mean you've decided to forfeit out insult war, Odango?" At her silence, he continued. "Odango? Hello, earth to Odango…"

_"Earth to Sailor Moon…"_

Bunny's fists clenched. The jerkwad just had to go and remind her of Tuxedo Mask, didn't he?

"What's wrong with you, Odango? Why aren't you insulting me?"

"Leave me alone." The hoarse whisper rustled past Serena's lips. "I'm tired."

"Obviously." He had walked in front of her and lowered his ridiculous glasses to regard her with his horribly blue eyes. _Blue eyes again…why do they keep haunting me? Everywhere I go, when I fight, when I sleep – everywhere I go… _"Are you feeling okay?"

"I'm just tired. Just let me be. I've gotta go to school."

She bit her lip as Darien fell into step beside her. Didn't he have anything better to be doing? Why was he plaguing her? Didn't he have to go to school?

As if he could hear her thoughts, Darien said, "High school starts an hour later than junior high does. Therefore, I'm gonna walk you to school. Who knows how many poor pedestrians you could terrorize in such a state? You're bad enough when you're awake."

"You're such an insensitive jerk." Bunny lets the words slip out of her mouth; bone-tired she may be, but he wasn't going to get away with that remark without being punished. "Why are you in such a good mood today?" _How could anyone be in a good mood after last night?_

"What makes you think I'm in a good mood?"

"Usually I'm lucky if you say five words to me. Today you must have said at least fifty already."

"Oh, so you count yourself lucky if I talk to you?" Darien quirked an eyebrow at her, flipping his schoolbag over his shoulder in that distinguished way he had.

"I didn't say that, you Neanderthal," countered Bunny without batting an eyelash. "It was a figure of speech."

"Sure it was. Hey, isn't that the bell?"

Sure enough, she could hear the incessant ringing of the school bell. She was late. Surprise, surprise – not.

Darien was watching her. "Shouldn't you be screaming and running at the speed of light towards homeroom right about now?"

"Why waste the energy?" Bunny replied. She felt her head nodding and felt a sudden urge to rest her head against Darien's shoulder – an urge that she quickly shoved out of her head. _Bunny! How could you even think such a thing? Not only is he the JERKWAD, but you were just moping about Tuxedo Mask not three minutes ago – what are you, some sort of scarlet woman!_

"You really are tired, aren't you?"

Bunny looked up at the upperclassmen, puzzled by the gentleness of his voice. "Yes."

"Poor Odango Atama." He patted her head. His hand rested there a moment, and he was silent, as though trying to figure out what to do. Suddenly, he handed his briefcase to Bunny and plucked her hair pins out of her buns. "Here, at least let me fix your hair up before you go in and face Haruna. It's a mess. Beautiful, as always, but a mess."

Words could not describe the shock that rushed through Bunny at these words. She froze, stunned speechless by this seeming reversal of the universe. She was walking to school with Darien, he was being _nice_, he was offering to do her hair for her, and he had just called her hair – the hair he teased her about _every single_ day – **beautiful**.

It was the end of the world. It had to be.

Bunny remained still as Darien's fingers – surprisingly deft – twisted her hair into her usual "odangoes." When he was finished and had stepped back to admire his handiwork, she fingered them tentatively and felt a fresh thrill of shock. They were exactly like her usual ones – how did he know how to make them? The secret to her odangoes was her own personal secret – as sacred to her as one of Andrew's secret recipes.

"How did you know how to do buns?" she demanded, somewhat shakily.

Darien flashed her a grin. She realized that his was another face on which she'd never seen a grin before. Yet the expression was…_familiar._

"From the first day I met you, I wondered how you made those Odangoes, Odango Atama. I asked Andrew's sister, and she said it was your secret, and you never told anyone how you did it." He grinned again. "So I made it my business to figure it out. And it turns out my theory was right? All you needed was that extra twist before you pull the hair through?"

Serena nodded slowly, still dumbfounded. "You made a theory…about my hair?" she finally managed to sputter. "That's…kinda creepy, Darien."

He shrugged, awkwardly fiddling with his school tie.

"And really nerdy." Bunny added thoughtfully. Then she smiled at him. "But sweet. Arigatou."

He smiled back, and that wave of emotion rose inside her again. Only this time it wasn't just a wave, it was a tsunami – she gripped the handles of her schoolbag tightly in one hand and quickly shoved his briefcase towards him with the other. She had to get away – "Here!"

He moved to take it, but she dropped it too quickly – his hands hadn't closed around the handle yet, and the bag fell to the ground, landing on the clasp and popping open. Bunny watched in dismay as books and pens and papers spilled out all over the sidewalk.

"Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry!" she exclaimed, dropping to her knees and beginning to snatch up the disgorged contents of his school bag. "I – I'm such a klutz!"

"No, it was my fault, too." Darien joined her on the ground, gathering up his supplies. Was it just her, or was he avoiding her eyes? "You're actually being – uh – pretty graceful today, Odango."

She barely heard his words, so focused was she on her relief that the wave had sank back down into the ocean again. She handed Darien the handful of pens she'd gathered up, then scanned the sidewalk to make sure they hadn't missed anything, and her eyes landed on something white half-hidden beneath the briefcase.

"Darien – " she began. His eyes flicked to hers. "Under your bag – " She began to reach for the object, but found her hand suddenly knocked aside.

"It's nothing. Just a tissue." She caught a glimpse of the white crushed in his hand before he stuffed it in his pocket. "Thanks for helping me pick up. You should probably get to school now."

Bunny shrank back, unable to tear her eyes from his. The ocean in her chest churned horribly; it was like last night all over again – _he's not yours – he doesn't like you _– what was _wrong _with her! His gaze slid from hers. She stumbled backwards, felt her back collide with the light pole, making a hollow, reverberating _thunggggg_, and then fled.

* * *

**A.N**: I know, I know, another disappointing ending. There really was no good place to end this chapter – none of the good stuff comes until next time.

Please, please, please, give me juicy reviews. It's so wonderful to log on and find paragraph lone reviews full of criticism and comments so that I have something to work with for the next chapter.

Lots of love,

EightofSwords


	5. Hurting

**A/N:** Dang, dang, dang! I had the first half of this chapter all typed out, and then it disappeared – I think I accidentally deleted the file. So…sorry if the first half isn't that good, I kind of rushed it because I was eager to get to the drama.

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Sailor Moon. And that makes me really sad. Review and make me happy again.

**Disclaimer** No. 2: I don't own _Cosmo_ magazine either. If I did, I would have a way better sense of fashion than I do.

* * *

**His Grin:**

Chapter Five

(Which Was Supposed to Be the Last Chapter and Isn't. Grrr.)

* * *

It wasn't until detention that Bunny realized that she hadn't thought about her leg all day. This could either because Tuxedo Mask had bound it so well, or because she had been too busy wondering about what that the white object Darien had so quickly removed from her sight was to think about her injury. 

She waited until Miss Haruna left the room to receive a phone call – from a Robert-someone-or-other – before she pulled her skirt up and lifted an edge of the bandage. Peering beneath the soft white cloth, she saw a long reddish scab surrounded by bruises that were slowly fading from yellow-green to purple. She poked the bruise and flexed her leg experimentally, then winced as pain jolted up her leg. _Okay, definitely still hurts. Oh, no, now it's bleeding again!_ Bunny mentally slapped herself as the rusty red of the scab began to darken to crimson. She hurriedly replaced the bandage. _Great, now I'm going to have to limp all the way to the arcade to meet Rei and Ami…_

Miss Haruna re-entered the room, and Bunny quickly yanked the hem of her skirt back down. The redhead glanced at her suspiciously, then returned to her issue of _Cosmo._

Bunny sighed, suddenly wishing that Darien were there for her to argue with. _On second thought, maybe not. After what happened this morning, I don't think I could look at him without blushing…_

"Someone on your mind, Bunny? A boy, perhaps?"

Bunny jumped at the dry voice. Miss Haruna was regarding her with mild curiosity.

_More like two boys_, thought Bunny wryly, thinking of Tuxedo Mask.

Bunny's silence must have worried Miss Haruna, because the teacher set down her magazine and leaned forward in her desk. "I know I may not be your favorite teacher, but you know what you can talk to me, right, Bunny?"

"Um," said Bunny, thinking of Miss Haruna's various boyfriends. Maybe she could help – but it would be too awkward to talk to her teacher about her love life – or lack thereof. "Yes, but it's nothing, Miss H. I'm fine. Really."

* * *

By the time Bunny hobbled in through the automatic doors of the Crown Arcade, it was half an hour past the designated meeting time for her Senshi meeting. _Rei is going to burn me alive,_ thought Bunny wearily. Bunny was so preoccupied by her dread of the poison Rei would surely spit at her that it completely slipped her mind that Darien would be in the arcade, talking to Andrew like he did every day. 

So when her eyes landed on the shock of blue-black hair at the serving counter, she froze. _No, not him, no, not him, no, I can't face him – _she _couldn't_ live through another tsunami! It would crash down on her this time; she didn't have the strength to resist it!

_Bunny, move! You dummy! Don't stand there like an idiot – someone'll notice and ask questions!_

Unwillingly, Bunny took one stilted step forward, then another, careful to hide her limp as best she could. Before she knew it, she had reached the counter was and standing behind the stool that was two seats to Darien's right. _That's right, not too close. Can't let them get suspicious…_

Bunny sat down and cleared her throat, acutely aware of the stares of both boys – Andrew and Darien – on her.

"H-h-have you – " Bunny croaked, then winced, cleared her throat, and tried again. "Have you seen Ami and Rei, Andrew?"

"Yeah, they left to look for you a while ago – they were worried because you were so late." Andrew stuck his pencil behind his ear, leaning an elbow on the counter.

"Not that the Odango Atama being late is anything new." Darien laughed beside her. She focused on her hands in her lap, feeling uncomfortably warm on her left side even though there was a whole seat between her and the being dubbed "Jerkwad." "Did Haruna give you extra-long detention or something, Odango?"

"No, " answered Bunny, picking up her bag and making to stand up. "I should go look for Ami-chan and Rei – "

"Nah, they said they'd be back if they didn't find you in fifteen minutes. Sit down, Odango." Darien leaned over and took her school bag from her yielding grasp, setting it on top of his on the stool between them. "Talk with us. Insult me or something."

Gaping, Bunny dropped back into her stool. She smiled at Andrew gratefully when he placed a frothy pink milkshake in front of her, and took a nonchalant sip, trying to hide her reaction to Darien's invitation. _Quick, make a retort or something. That's what they expect…_

"Why would I wanna waste any time talking with you, Jerkwad?" Bunny grinned as she spoke, feeling a sense of control flood her veins. _There you go, just keep up the insults and you'll be fine – he's not really that sweet or adorable…mayday, mayday! Ship going down, need another insult, pronto!_ "After all, your primitive brain isn't even capable of speech!

Darien laughed.

Bunny felt a heavy pit settle in her stomach. _He…laughed? He looks so cute when he laughs, so much younger – No! Why did he have to laugh! He's messing everything up! He's not cute, Bunny, not at all, not cute, not cute, not cute –_

"_Enough_!"

Bunny jolted out of her inner battle as Andrew slammed the counter with his fists. Darien, too, was regarding Andrew curiously. _What happened!_

"Are you on drugs?" Andrew demanded of Darien, crossing his arms across his, er, apron. He apprised Darien sharply. "You don't seem like yourself today. First you come in here and order a soda – a _soda_! – instead of your precious coffee, and then you _laugh_ when Bunny accuses you of being incapable of speech!" He grabbed Darien by the lapels of his school blazer and began to shake him. "YOU'RE TOO _HAPPY_! WHY ARE YOU SO _HAPPY_!"

"Andrew – " Bunny began, eyes wide, but discovered she didn't know what to say and closed her mouth. _IS the whole world going insane? Darien the jerkwad did my HAIR, **I** have a crush on my worst enemy, and Andrew's practically assaulting his best friend! What's wrong with this picture!_

Andrew threw a glance at Bunny, and his eyes sharpened. He turned back to Darien. "I think I know what it is. You got a date, didn't you?"

"WHAT?" Darien yelped. "I don't think so." He pried Andrew's fingers from his blazer and leaned back in his stool, away from Andrew. "What makes you think I'm happy, anyways? I'm not happy." But he was grinning.

Andrew looked at Bunny. "There is something definitely wrong with him."

Bunny nodded, opening her mouth to speak, but Darien beat her to it.

"I know Odango agrees because she asked me the same question this morning." Darien focused his gaze on her. She carefully averted her own eyes. _Notcutenotcutenotcutenotcutenotcute…!_

"Hmm." Andrew glanced at Bunny again. She flinched from the weight of both of their stares and hurriedly took a slurp of milkshake. "Does that mean Bunny's your date?"

"NO!" Darien bellowed. Bunny felt a hot, swift jab of hurt and slurped more of her milkshake, trying to numb the pain. "God, Andrew! Can't a guy be happy without being on drugs or having a date!"

"Not in this world," sighed a wistful Andrew. "Oh, look, here's Ami and Rei now!" He waved to the two girls entering through the sliding doors. "Come over here, you two!"

Bunny could have told Andrew that Rei needed no urging. Already feeling the heat of Rei's wrath on her back, Bunny clutched her frosty milkshake glass tighter, reluctantly swiveling her stool around to meet the black-haired priestess.

Rei stomped over to right in front of Bunny, eyes flashing. "Where were you?" she demanded. "Wait, let me guess – detention! Always, always detention! Honestly, Bunny, is it so hard for you to get to school on time or to stay awake in class! It's not like you ever do anything outside of school that could make you so tired that you can't do anything inside of school!"

Bunny heard the double meaning veiled beneath Rei's ranting – _Sailor Moon's just as lazy as you! It's not like you ever do anything at battles but scream and whine, so you don't have an excuse to be late to school and Senshi meetings!_

"Sorry," Bunny whispered, eyes fastened to the floor. There was a similarity between her and the floor, she realized, a special kinship. It was dirty and stomped all over, and so was she. The difference between them was that she deserved it and the floor didn't. _Poor floor. I wish I could help you…but I can't even help myself._ Self-disgust rolled over Bunny in waves, sucking her like the tide, deeper and deeper into the sand.

"Sorry? Sorry's not good enough, you Odango Atama! You always say sorry, but you never do anything – "

"Hey."

Rei stopped mid-rant and lifted her flashing eyes from Bunny to see who had dared to interrupt her. Bunny didn't need to look up; she recognized the voice. Her head drooped further. She didn't think it was possible for her to feel any worse than she did right now, but if anyone could accomplish that feat, it would be Darien. She clutched her milkshake tighter.

"_What_?" Rei bit out at him.

"You're not allowed to call her that."

Goosebumps ran up and down Bunny's skin. What was he saying?

"Call her what? A stupid, lazy, crybaby klutz?"

Bunny felt a hand slip into hers. It was cool, like the milkshake glass, and she looked gratefully up at Ami. The blue-haired girl smiled reassuringly back and squeezed her hand, then directed Bunny's eyes back to the showdown currently going down between Rei and Darien.

Darien, apparently, had ignored Rei's second comment. "Odango Atama. You're not allowed to call her that. That's _my_ name for her."

Bunny felt a simultaneous sinking of her stomach and jumping of her heart. He couldn't mean that – but it sounded so possessive! Maybe…could he like her, after all? Or was he just being regular, selfish, sadistic Darien by refusing to share his insults with other people?

Rei didn't reply for a moment, grinding her teeth as she stared at Darien. "Fine," she gritted out finally and spun, throwing herself into the stool beside Bunny, away from Darien. "Andrew, get me a hot tea, _please_."

Andrew nodded, and turned away to make it. Silence reigned at the counter after that. Bunny huddled in her stool, staring at her fingers in her lap. Ami had moved over to Rei's other side.

"So, um, Bunny," began Ami finally. "Did you hear the new Sailor V news?"

_She's trying to cheer me up,_ thought Bunny, and lifted her head to look at Ami, summoning a smile for her friend's benefit. _Everything's so mixed-up…Rei's gonna hate me even more now, and Luna will be mad that I was late for another Senshi meeting…_

"Melvin told me," continued Ami, encouraged by Bunny's smile. "He said that Sailor V hasn't been spotted in England for over two weeks. I looked it up on the web, and the crime rate in London's increased by forty-three precent. It's like Sailor V's just disappeared!"

_Okay_, thought Bunny somewhat cynically, _Maybe she's not trying to cheer me up. How is it supposed to make me feel better that Sailor V's **disappeared**?_ Bunny immediately felt contrite for harboring such uncharitable thoughts and hurried to cover up her guilt. "That's horrible! Do they know where she's gone?"

"Maybe she got injured in a battle," injected Darien thoughtfully. Bunny spun to look at him, heart pounding. _Calm down, Bunny, he was talking about Sailor V, not you. _"Don't they have youmas over in England too?"

"Senshi can't get injured, though," argued Andrew, returning with Rei's cup of tea. Steam billowed from the dark liquid. "Careful, it's piping hot. You might want to wait a few minutes before you drink it," he said in an aside to her. "The Senshi are invincible. I follow all the news reports on 'em, and I've never seen one of 'em get anything worse than a couple of scrapes. They're too good at fighting."

Bunny flinched. _Except me,_ she thought bitterly.

"That's not true," Darien countered. He set his soda down on the counter and leaned towards Andrew, who was standing in front of Rei. Bunny held her breath as Darien's sleeve brushed her bare arm. _Don't shiver, he'll notice, don't shiver, don't shiver – _"Sailor Moon's the best fighter the Senshi have, and she got hurt just the other night in a battle."

Bunny choked, hands gripping the edge of the counter. _Darien thinks I'm a good fighter? Darien thinks I'm a good fighter! He thinks I'm a good – wait a second – DARIEN SAW THE BATTLE?_

Rei and Ami's necks cracked as their heads whirled towards Bunny. "SHE DID!"

"Uh – yeah." Darien seemed flustered; he leaned away from Bunny and shifted in his seat. Eyes directed downward to avoid Ami and Rei's piercing stares, Bunny watched his leg jostle the stool between them so that his and her briefcase slid over to hang precariously a few inches over the edge of the stool. The slightest movement was going to make them fall – which was how Bunny felt right then.

Everything was happening too fast. Darien – however he found out – had just revealed that Sailor Moon had been injured in a battle that Ami and Rei hadn't even been aware of, which meant she was going to get chewed out yet again, by the Senshi _and _Luna, and she had a crush on Darien, and she had a crush on Tuxedo Mask, and neither liked her back, even though both had defended her from Rei, and her leg was hurting really bad, and she had failed that geometry final this morning, and she was a horrible fighter that no one could depend on, and Darien being so close was driving her _crazy_ – she was about to lose control; the tsunami was rearing again

"You saw her?" Rei demanded of Darien. "She was fighting? Without the other Senshi?"

Darien snorted. "No offense, but the other Senshi don't do much even when they are at battles. They're useful for distractions, I'll give you that, but Sailor Moon's the one who dusts the youmas."

Rei's face exploded in splotches of red. "Oh, please!" she shouted. "Sailor Moon's as much of a crybaby as Bunny is! She can't even walk without the Senshi or Tuxedo Mask's help!"

Bunny bit her lip, fingers tightening around the counter. _Don't cry, don't you dare cry, Bunny…_

"Actually," Darien drawled, stirring his soda with a straw. "Tuxedo Mask _was_ there. But he didn't help with the youma. She handled it fine on her own."

"And how did you happen to see all this happening?" Rei demanded.

Darien's stirring quickened. "From my apartment. The balcony's got a really good view." He stopped stirring and took a sip of soda. "So good, in fact, that I saw last night's battle, too."

"Really? So did I." Rei's voice was tight. With the steam from her hot tea curling up to surround her face, it was easy to imagine her to be steaming at the ears. "So if you saw the battle, that means you saw how Sailor Moon couldn't even dust the youma without Tuxedo Mask's help?"

"No, it means that I saw how she was exhausted and limping, and how instead of helping her, Sailor Mars shoved her into a TREE!"

"Only because she was stumbling around like an idiot instead of dusting the youma!"

"She had a gash the size of the Great Wall of China on her leg!" Darien bellowed, leaping to his feet. His eyes – his blue eyes – glinted angrily. "The Senshi are just lucky she didn't cut her hamstring, because they'd be sitting ducks without her!"

_Hamstring – **hamstring **–_ A gasp tore from Bunny's throat. _Oh God – no, he couldn't be –_

"You don't know what the heck you're talking about!" Rei shouted, slamming her fists on the table. The motion shook the whole counter, and before anyone could do anything, Rei's steaming cup of tea had crashed over on its side and spilled its scalding contents onto Bunny's lap.

Pain. Blistering agony. The boiling hot tea soaked right through Bunny's bandage as though it weren't even there and burned into her bruises, her re-opened cut. With an anguished shriek, Bunny shoved herself out of the stool, yanking up the hem of her skirt, desperate to tear off the bandage, which was soaked with the scalding tea. _Get it off, get it off, get it off – _

She heard a clatter, realized that her violent motions had knocked her briefcase – and Darien's – onto the floor and popped them open. The contents were spilled across the floor: pencils, pens, paper, books, papers, a glove… her tear-blurred eyes snapped back to that last object, and widened.

A man's white glove, stained red at the fingertips.

Her eyes snapped up, darting from Ami's horrified face to Rei's blazing eyes to Darien's intent gaze. Feeling an incredible weight press down on her chest, she followed the path of his suddenly distinctive blue eyes to her own bare leg with its tea-soaked bandage.

_Blue eyes…black hair…his grin…_

"Oh, no," Bunny breathed, and ran.

* * *

**A/N**: I lied AGAIN! (sobs) This was SUPPOSED to be the last chapter, but I couldn't do it. It was as though I reached that last sentence, and my brain just turned off. "Cliffhanger," it said. "Must leave cliffhanger. I won't come up with anything more until you post this on have such a sadistic brain. It's not fair. 

Next chapter WILL be the LAST one even if it KILLS me! This fic will be done, because I have neglected STC for too long!

P.S. Meg-chan, was there anything resembling mush in this chapter? I started trying to write the end to this story with mush like you said, and I suddenly discovered that I have no idea how to write sap that is both believable and heart-warming. All I can write is arguing! AARRGH!


	6. Warm Like His Grin

**A/N**: Finally. Last chapter. Depressing, I know, but not as depressing as the fact Sailor Moon doesn't belong to me.

My **Disclaimer** Haiku:

A golden-haired klutz,

She is Princess of the Moon,

And I don't own her.

**A/N**: I know, I know, I need to get a life. But writing Sailor Moon haikus are way more fun than the English homework I keep putting off – I wish I could use Starlight Honeymoon Therapy Kiss on Romeo and Juliet. They'd probably be happier that way. But I'll shut up now.

* * *

**His Grin:**

Chapter Six

(The End. Finally.)

* * *

_He's Tuxedo Mask. Darien is Tuxedo Mask. _

Bunny felt strangely calm. Eerily calm.

_Is it because I know that it doesn't matter? Because neither of them would ever have liked me anyways?_

Maybe it was the calm before the storm. The deadly quiet before the tsunami crashed down. Because he would come and find her. She knew he would, because he would want to find out how a ditz like her could be Sailor Moon. And if he wanted to find her, he would find her whether she wanted him to or not, because somehow, Tuxedo Mask always found Sailor Moon.

So Bunny ran. Maybe if she ran fast enough or far enough, she could escape it. Wear herself out so that when the tsunami arrived and swept her away, she would be too tired to care.

But her leg was hurting. The wet bandage that she had clawed half off at the arcade before she looked up and seen _him_ was flapping in the wind like a limp, broken wing, and the icy wind stung her torn skin. She had to slow down. Had to stop while she could.

Right on cue, her foot caught in a root, and she went sprawling in a typical Bunny klutz attack. The nerves of her legs wailed in protest, and she whimpered as she levered herself to her knees. _Ow…_

She wrapped her arms around her heaving chest and looked around. Unsurprisingly, she was in the park, on the bank of the brook that meandered through the park. A couple of leaves brushed against her cheek; she turned and saw that she was sitting next to a weeping willow – how appropriate.

_I shouldn't be moping about like this_, she thought, somewhat guiltily. _Ami'll be worried, and I left my communicator in my bag, so if there's a youma attack, they won't be able to contact me, not that I'm good for doing anything in battle anyways…_

**_…crybaby…can't even dust a youma without Tuxedo Mask's help…stumbling around like an idiot…_**

Rei's voice bounced around in her skull. Ami hadn't refuted any of it, so she must have agreed…and Ami was the smart one, so if she thought that Sailor Moon was no use in battle, then it must be true.

_But Darien didn't agree, _pointed out a corner of her mind that she was afraid to listen to. _And he should know, he's been at just as many battles as Ami and Rei…he said he **trusted **you…_

_But that was before he found out that Sailor Moon was **me**._

"Bunny?"

Bunny jerked around, then flinched as her leg protested at the movement with a particularly vicious stab of pain.

"Miss Haruna?" Bunny's eyes landed on her red-haired teacher, arm in arm with a brown-haired man. Both were dressed in paint-spattered jeans and t-shirts, and Miss Haruna's eyes were sparkling. It was quite a different Miss Haruna than Bunny was used to seeing. _She seems so relaxed and happy._

"Bunny, what are you doing out here at this time of evening? It's almost dark," said Miss Haruna, relinquishing her companion's arm and starting towards Bunny. "Shouldn't you be at home?"

Without waiting for an answer, Miss Haruna looked at the man over her shoulder and said, "Robert, why don't you go buy me an ice cream? Bunny and I are going to have a quick chat."

"Peach sherbet?" asked Robert in a voice that clearly said he already knew the answer.

"Peach sherbet," confirmed Miss Haruna with a fond smile. She plopped down Indian-style beside Bunny.

"Diet or fat-free?"

"ROBERT!"

"Okay, okay." He laughed, backing away. "I get the message, I'll leave you to your girl-talk."

"About time, too!" Miss Haruna crossed her arms across her chest and watched him leave, then turned to Bunny. "Bunny, hon, what's wrong? You look so sad."

"I – I'm okay," lied Bunny quickly.

"Bunny, I'm a teacher. I can smell a whopper like that from a mile away. Why don't you tell me what's wrong?"

"I – I – I wouldn't want to interrupt your date," stammered Bunny.

"Oh, Robby won't mind," replied Miss Haruna with certainty. "He knows you're one of my favorite students."

Bunny gaped. "Me – one of your favorite students?" she squeaked. "What do you mean? I'm always late, and I sleep in your class, and you give me detention!"

"Exactly. You remind me of myself at your age," said Miss Haruna. "Which isn't exactly a compliment, I guess – but that's not the point. I never got to class on time either, and my grades were certainly nothing to be proud of either. So I guess you could say I have a bit of a soft spot for you, Bunny."

"Um – then why do you give me detention all the time?"

Miss Haruna flashed a toothy smile. "Love hurts."

"You're telling me," Bunny agreed, then paled. "Oops."

"Aha! Something _is_ bothering you!" exclaimed Miss Haruna triumphantly. She sobered quickly. "Boy trouble, isn't it?"

"How do you _do_ that?" Bunny said in amazement and a little bit of annoyance.

"Hey, it wasn't all that long ago that I was in high school. I know how to read the signs. So c'mon, spill. What's the problem?"

Bunny sighed. _She won't leave until you tell her something. Might as well tell her the truth. Well – the Luna-censored one._

"It's, um, this guy," Bunny began tentatively, looking at her hands. She seemed to be doing that a lot today. "I like him…a lot. Not enough to, um, declare my love or anything, but enough that my heart skips when I see him and, I'm disappointed when I don't see him, and it makes me happy when I talk to him, and he makes me laugh, and – " _You're babbling again, Bunny-baka! _"Well, I'd go out with him if he asked me," she finished, blushing.

"I see." Miss Haruna nodded sympathetically. "So…does he like you back?"

"No. Well, I don't know – I mean, yes, I do know, because he couldn't, and he doesn't – " Bunny's shoulders slumped. "It's messy. But I'm pretty sure he doesn't like me back." _And even if he did, we couldn't be together._

Miss Haruna smiled gently. "Why not?"

"Why not?" Bunny echoed in confusion. "Because I'm clumsy and nowhere near as pretty as other girls, and I get awful grades and eat a lot and klutz out every two steps, that's why not!"

"You haven't looked in a mirror lately, have you, Bunny?" asked Miss Haruna with a wry grin. She leaned forward. "Do you know how often I've wished I had your figure? It's true, you eat nonstop – but you're still the smallest girl in the class! And your hair – I would kill to have hair like yours, Bunny. I've heard lots of girls in the class say the same thing. And you know why they say that, Bunny? Because they like you. When they're feeling down about something, you listen to them. You've got a smile for everyone everyday. Do you remember when Ami first transferred to our school? I was so worried that she wouldn't make any friends and that the other kids might ostracize her, so I was planning on asking you to hang out with her and introduce her to some other kids. But by the time I remembered to ask you, you'd already become best friends with her!" Miss Haruna tapped her heart. "That's where your strength lies, Bunny. Right here. Don't worry about those other flaws, honey – none of us are perfect. In fact, it's our imperfections that keep people from hating us." Miss Haruna frowned. "Do you get what I'm trying to say?"

"Yeah…yeah, I guess so," said Bunny slowly. _So I make friends with people. Big deal. My flaws certainly don't keep Rei from hating me. _"Thank you, Miss H." _At least you tried_.

Miss Haruna stood with a wide smile and brushed her pants off, clearly fooled by the dazzling – though fake – smile Bunny flashed at her. "Always happy to help a favorite student. Especially when it comes to _loooooove_ troubles," she teased, starting down the path. She waved. "See you tomorrow!"

"Bye…" Bunny watched Miss Haruna disappear, then heard something rustling in the leaves behind her. Her hand flew to her brooch, then fell. She turned to face the tree, tilting her head and feeling her heart pound. _A youma…?_

Instead, an ebony head and a red Azabu High blazer dropped down from the tree branch. "Y – you heard all that?"

Her heart dropped to her toes as an ebony head and red Azabu High blazer dropped down from the tree branch. "Y – you heard all that?"

Darien nodded awkwardly. "Uh – yes."

_Safety_, was all Bunny could think. She needed safety, an anchor. _Safety in insults._ "You…you…JERK!" She aimed a kick at him. He darted out of the way. "How could you eavesdrop like that? Have you no morals!"

"Hey, it's not like I _knew_ you were going to confess your undying love for me!" Darien retorted, darting out of the way of another kick. He wore a huge grin, and Bunny realized that he was going to make this hard for her – he was going to tease her for having a crush on Tuxedo Mask, instead of pretending her flirting had never happened. She didn't know whether to be relieved or heartbroken. "I just came to give you back your schoolbag!"

"I did _not_ confess my undying love for you," Bunny said sharply.

"Fine, be that way, Odango." His eyes danced, in the same way that Tuxedo Mask's had. How many times had she longed to see those dancing eyes without a mask? Hundreds, but now that her wish had come true and she felt sick. She wanted to run. Run away like the wimpy little bunny that she was, because she had no right to see him like this. No right to feel about him the way she did. "Why did you run out of the arcade?"

**_…crybaby…can't even dust a youma… idiot…_**

"Bunny…." His shiny black loafers stopped in front of her; she blinked back tears and hugged her legs tighter to her chest. If she just kept silent, would he leave her alone? He was kind enough to do that, at least. "Why did you run? Why are you crying?" She felt his fingers pulling back the curtain of hair from her face, just like he had done on that night, when he had drawn it back so that she could see her wound. Déjà vu, what a sense of déjà vu. "Did Rei make you cry? Cause if she did, I swear, Bunny – "

"No! It's not Rei!" Bunny blurted out frantically, head flying up to look at him. Why did his face have to be so concerned! She didn't want him to care about her at all if he couldn't care about her the way she wanted him to! The lump in her throat reduced her voice to a whisper. "She didn't do anything…this is all my fault. I'm sorry, I'm really sorry."

"Bunny, what's your fault?"

"All of this." She buried her head again in the damp folds of her tea-soaked skirt – the minty scent was suffocating. "You thought Sailor Moon was someone strong…I'm sorry she's not what you thought she was. I never meant for you to find out – "

"There you go again! Why do you keep belittling yourself like that? Didn't you hear anything I said at the arcade?"

"I heard it," said Bunny, voice muffled. "But it's not true. I suck at this fighting – I'm not strong. _Rei_ is strong. Rei should be the leader. All I ever do is risk their safety – and yours. All I do is drag everyone down."

Darien exhaled frustratedly and raked his fingers through his hair. "There you go again! Why do you keep belittling yourself? Is it so hard for you to comprehend that you're the most important person on this whole damned planet? All that stuff Rei was spouting off – it was trash. Her own selfish jealousy. You don't see _her_ dusting youma by herself. You don't see _her_ traipsing off to battles alone so that her friends can get some extra study time! _You_'re the only reasons the Dark Kingdom hasn't overrun the whole city by now. And you're…" his voice trailed off, and he gulped. "_You_'re the one who makes me feel like I have a purpose. Like I have a reason to smile."

"No…" Bunny scrambled backwards, the fog retreating. She tried to sever the thread that sewed her gaze to his, but couldn't. "No…you don't…I'm not…"

"Not what?" he gave her a small, uncertain smile. "Not the reason I'm so happy I can hardly breathe right now? Bunny, do you know how _happy_ I was when I found out you were Sailor Moon? I was so worried, I felt like some player, having the same feelings for both of you – but you're the same, it was you all along!"

"No!" Bunny blurted out. "You can't! Darien, I'm not good enough for you! You deserve someone better –someone better, someone smarter or braver – "

"Buns, I don't _want_ someone stronger or braver. There _is_ no one stronger or braver than you. Even if there was, I wouldn't care! No one knows me as well as you do. No one ever took the time to know me the way you did."

"I don't…you can't….I _don't_ know you that well!" Bunny protested desperately – anything to keep him from going on. Her dearest wish come true – but he couldn't. He couldn't!

"You don't?" He grabbed her hand, dark eyes searching her face. She felt the tsunami rearing once more, washing the words from her mouth and leaving her speechless. She couldn't move, couldn't speak, couldn't breathe. "What's my favorite flavor of ice cream?"

Bunny gulped, palm sweaty. Could he feel it? "Chocolate. But I only know because I've seen you order it in the arcade – "

"Which class do I hate the most?"

"Literature. But – "

"What's my favorite drink?"

"Chocolate shake, but you usually order coffee because you need the caffeine, and you add like fifty packs of sugar to make it sweeter because otherwise you say it tastes like cigarettes – "She knew that by now she was babbling, but his eyes were distracting her. " – and you always say you can't understand why I like strawberry so much, because strawberries only taste good with chocolate, but I say that strawberries are healthier than chocolate, and you should eat healthy since you want to be a doctor… " She sucked in a shaky breath. His hand tightened around her wrist; her ribcage tightened around her heart. "Darien…"

"Do you understand now?" His voice was soft and gentle. He kept his distance, the only contact between them was his fingers grasping her wrist. "None of that other stuff matters. Not Sailor Moon or Tuxedo Mask or youmas or Rei or your flaws or mine…in fact, do you know what my favorite thing about you is, Bunny?"

She shook her head mutely. Then smiled fleetingly, thinking of a conversation a few night ago – "My fuku?"

Laughter bubbled forth from his throat. She smiled shyly back, watching him. As he laughed, he threw his head back into the moonlight, and she saw the grin unfurled on his face. It burst the cloud that had hovered above her heart, and sent a cool, cleansing rain pouring down upon her aching psyche.

"Buns…" He grabbed her other hand and pulled her towards him. She didn't resist, merely rested her head against his neck, smiling into his blazer. "Actually, that's close."

"Hentai," she grumbled into the red material.

"Hey, I'm a teenage boy, not a Jedi," he protested.

"Just answer the question, Cape Boy."

"Fine, fine. Wait – what was the question again?"

"You are such a jerkwad." Bunny sniffed and pulled away from him. He laughed and tugged her back again.

"Just kidding, just kidding – okay, my favorite thing about you is your klutz attacks."

Bunny lifted her head and stared at him in slack-jawed astonishment. "You're kidding, right?"

"No, no, I'm serious." He grinned at her. "After all, if you didn't klutz out the way you did, Tuxedo Mask would never get to whisk Sailor Moon into his arms, and I'd never get to bump into you everyday in front of the arcade – God, I never would have even met you." A frown knotted his brows, and he hugged her closer. "Thank God you're such a klutz, Buns."

Bunny laughed. "Now there's something I never thought I'd hear coming out of your mouth."

"Yeah, well I never thought I'd hear you confessing your undying love for me to your math teacher."

"I did NOT confess my undying love for you! I said I would go out with you if you asked me!"

"Same difference. Is Saturday night good for you, Odango?"

"Stop calling me that, your jerkwad – wait a second. What? Could you repeat that again?"

"Oh, come on." Darien rolled his eyes. "I know you heard me. You're just trying to make me beg."

"Well, you'd do the same thing, if it was the guy who'd made fun of everything about you for the last year asking you out."

"No, I a guy asked me out, I would turn around and walk away very quickly," corrected Darien. "And I refuse to beg. Superheroes don't beg."

"Fine." Bunny thrust her nose into the air, turning away from him. "Then I won't go out with you."

"Then I'll kidnap you!" He scooped her up.

"DARIEN!" Bunny squirmed in his arms, beating his chest. Her face felt like it was on fire.

"What? You know you think it's romantic," Darien teased, jumping up to the tree branch with her. "Just like a prince stealing his princess off into the sunset – "

"Hold up, buddy – since when am I YOUR princess!"

"Since I saved your live about two billion times – you know, in some cultures, that would make you my slave." Darien smirked suggestively down at her.

"You HENTAI!" Bunny screeched, blushing furiously. "And weren't you the one telling Rei that I didn't need any help fighting youmas?"

"I said you didn't need the Scouts," drawled Darien. "I conveniently left the matter of Tuxedo Mask's necessity open."

"Yes, how convenient," agreed Bunny with a roll of her eyes.

Darien sniffed. "You're not a very supportive girlfriend."

"GIRLFRIEND? Since when am I your GIRLFRIEND?"

"Must you make this so complicated?"

"Of course I do. I'm a girl."

"I noticed."

"You better have." Bunny punched his arm. "Hey, Darien – why were you carrying your glove around in your school bag?"

"My glove – oh my God, Buns, your leg, I totally forgot about it!" He immediately leapt back down to the ground and set her down, his fingers reaching or the soaked bandage. "Is it okay?'

"Yeah, yeah, it's fine," she insisted, grabbing his hands and forcing her to look at him. _Twinges a bit, but I'm not about to let him get distracted. _"You didn't answer my question."

He looked up at her and grinned. "Did that last sentence feel a bit like déjà vu?"

Bunny laughed. "To tell you the truth, Darien, everything feels a bit like déjà vu when I'm with you."

"Oh." He propped his forehead against hers, eyes and mouth grinning. His breath stirred her hair. "Well, let's hope that we get a lot of déjà vu when we're doing this." His lips met hers.

Bunny's arms wound around his neck. In the back of her mind, she felt that tsunami looming up again. This time, she did nothing to stop it, and it crashed down, flooding her mind and sweeping away all her inhibitions and fears in a spray of cool, refreshing water that was blue and warm.

Blue like his eyes.

And warm like his grin.

* * *

A/N: WOOHOOO! My first series EVER is DOOOOOOOONE! Oh, yeah, oh, yeah! It doesn't even matter right now that I have a huge science project due in two days that I haven't even started. I wrote a whole series! Yes!

I hope this met all of your expectations. A lot of people had questions in their reviews like, "Why did Tux have the glove with him?" and "How could he touch the tiara without being burned?" Both are questions that I'm thinkgin about tackling in a sequel, so I don't want to give them away quite yet…however, I am sad to say that I won't be starting the sequel unless a.) a lot of ppl want one, and b.) I finish "Not Drunk" and write at least five more chapters for _STC and Why We Can't._

Anyway, guys – lots of love! Thank you so much for all your support – your reviews were the sunlight and rain nurturing my stories as it struggled to put out roots.


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